How to purchase a calcium reactor with monitor (and then set it up?)

ok, so i'm thinking about a calcium reactor. my tank is cycling now, so i'm waiting to see what happens, but last time this 75 gal was up and running i had to put in 50ml of b-ionic 2 part (really 100ml, duh) every day. and i was NOT good about remembering every day, so ca/alk levels varied alot, and i think the tank suffered due to this.

so i'm thinking more about a co2/calcium reactor.

the problem is, i don't think i fully understand it.

this is what i think i understand - there's a pump that pulls water out of the sump, and pushes it thru a reactor chamber filled with aragonite. there is a co2 canister that pushes co2 thru the same chamber to acidify the chamber contents. the effluent has a low ph but high ca, alk, and mg/strontium based on the medium you use.

this is what i don't get - how does a monitor/controller come into play. i get that you use a ph probe and can monitor either the chamber ph, effluent ph, or aquarium ph. based on the info, the controller turns something on and off.

WHAT IS THE SOMETHING THAT GETS TURNED ON AND OFF? is it the CO2 supply to the reactor? is it the water pump running sump water into the reactor? which monitor location(s) is best?

thanks. more questions to come. sorry about the caps.

 

I would be curious as to this too b/c I have been throwing around the idea of adding a Ca reactor.

 

anyone?

 

Get in touch with Tangster. He builds them simple and they come with good media that contains lots of trace elements.

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If you want to use a controller, make sure your Calcium reactor comes with an optional solenoid. That is what turns the flow of CO2 on and off.

 

ok, so the water flow always stays on and the controller turns the co2 supply on/off.

is it best to monitor the effluent ph, reactor ph, or aquarium ph, or a combination of these?

what controller would be best? - i've seen a milwaukee ph controller recommended that looks good (from a distance). i'm leaning towards a single function controller rather than a multi because i don't know what else i'd monitor/control (lights are on timer and use the tunze osmolator ato). would there be another reason to get a multifunction controller?

 

I drip my effluent into a Lees Specimen Container like they bag the fish in at the LFS which hangs on the side of the sump and overflows in to the main section. The pH probe is inserted into this so you monitor the effluent pH which turns the controller on and off. The water continues to flow all the time.
Check out the directions and reactors at www.geosreef.com , he has the easiest to understand directions I have come across.
My old controller was a Milwaukee SMS-122 which worked great but I recently bought a Reefkeeper Lite and plan to switch it over to that to simplify equipment.
I really like the RKL since it also controls my Koralia Evolution 1400's on a wavemaker function, lights, moonlights, fans, heaters, pumps, has a feeding mode where pumps shut off, alarms and shuts lights off on overtemperature etc. lots of functionality.

 

Well, obviously the most important pH is the tank pH. That's not how you control your Calcium Reactor though. There are so many variables here that I cannot answer your question. I.e. Are you using a single chamber CR or a dual chamber CR? What is your tank's demand for Calcium & Alkalinity? yada, yada, yada. However, for a 75 I would probably go with a single chamber CR with an effluent probe. (To be honest, I wouldn't even put a CR on a 75. If you forget to dose two-parters, have you thought of dual peristaltic dosing pumps)?

I really don't keep up with the brands. On each install, I determine what I need and determine the best one for that situation. I've not used the Milwaukee single function controller before so I can't speak to it's efficacy. However, if it's anything like other Milwaukee products, it should do a good job.

In many instances, I want a multifunction controller. In some instances, I like to monitor pH, conductivity (salinity), and ORP (if not running ozone). I like to control temperature, top-off, and lights, and ORP (if running ozone). (I used to set up large systems and I didn't want to have to go back often. If something was way off, I would get a message. Then I could send an employee out to go check on it). In other words, it all depends on what you need.

 

az thanks for the link - that's the best info i've seen yet.
so it looks like you have to have 2 pumps for the reactor - one to circulate the water in the reactor, the other to feed the reactor/force effluent out.

if you monitor reactor pH to control co2, it seems like it would be safer to also monitor the tank ph. is it possible to have a redundant control? - eg the reactor ph probe is the primary on/off for the co2 supply, but if tank ph drops too low the co2 supply is shut off also? can you do this by having 2 solenoids in line?

inwall your reply came up while i was typing. thanks! i can't do the drip/peristaltic thing with the 2part b/c it gets cold (50's) where my tank is and this winter the calcium part precipitated in the low temp.

 

AZ is spot on.

The geo reactors are very simple to set up and use. I love mine.

Now for regulators, stay away from the milwaukee, , tunze, JBJ, and pretty much every one else out there beside the reef fanatic regulator, or the aquarium plants regulator. The milwaukee ones are known to fail in a short time. My geo came with a milwaukee reg and it failed witihin a years use. The milwaukee ph controller works fine, but I do want to get a whole tank controller and sell my milwaukee ph controller once I get a tank controller.

Geo's come with a recirc pump, usually an eheim. You need a feed pump though. I use a MJ900, but a tom's aqualifter pump will work too.

You could have a redundant ph controller to monitor the tank's ph, but that really is not as important as it might sound. Once the reactor is set up and dialed in, you won't have any issues with ph of the tank.